LG CU720 Shine Silver Review

One of LG appliance stars of 2007 was certainly the LG Shine. At the time, the only example available was the LG Shine KE970, made primarily for the European and Asian markets. You can get an unlocked version for the United States, but it would cost you a pretty penny. Also, it did not have 3G, and its features are quite underwhelming. Fast-forward several months later we finally got the American counterpart, the LG CU720 Shine. It is not only quad-band (rather than tri-band as KE970), the CU720 Shine also comes equipped with 3G. Aside from that, not much has improved - there are still many of the same characteristics, the same flat keyboard, and I did not like the CU720 joystick navigation. But if you really need the shiniest cursor on the block phone, the LG Shine certainly fits the bill. The price is $ 149.99 with a two-year contract for service.



Design
The LG Shines perfectly and personifies its name. Not only does it shine, it positively gleams. It has a beautiful polished metal exterior and a sparkling mirror-finished squarely screen that exudes luxury and refinement. In fact, you can use the screen as a small compact mirror when the phone is in standby mode. Measuring 3.93 inches high by 1.99 inches wide by 0.59 inch thick and weighing about 4.23 ounces, Shine has a solid stainless steel casing which makes it very solid feel in the hand. The Radiance of the slider mechanism shows strength, and it requires a strong push to enable it to slide smoothly. Likewise for KE970, however I wish they could make it easier to open since my fingers often slipped on the shiny surface of the phone.

If you press any button on the phone, a beautiful 2.25-inch screen will appear underneath the mirrored finish of the screen. With support of 262000 colors, the screen is simply superb, and the images are rich in details and colors. Another beautiful thing on the screen, it is "multi-angle vision technology" that allows you to view the screen from almost any angle. You can adjust the numbering style of policing, and the backlight brightness. The menu interface is fairly simple you have the choice of an icon or menu from with different styles.



Characteristics
Unlike the original Shine, Shine-CU720 packs a little punch when it comes to functionality. For the basics, the CU720 Shine has a beautiful 1000-entry contacts list with the entry in each room for two numbers, e-mail address, and a memo. You can also assign a contact to any caller group, a photo identity of the caller, or one of 10 polyphonic ringtones. Other basic features include a vibrate mode, text and multimedia messaging, an alarm clock, a calculator, notepad, a calendar, calculator, tip calculator, a world clock, a to-do list, a stopwatch, a unit converter, a date finder, and a d-day counter. More advanced features include voice command support, a wireless Web browser, a voice recorder, e-mail, instant messaging (AOL contends, Windows Live, and messaging services Yahoo), a high - speaker, and stereo Bluetooth.

The phone also works well as just a phone. My friend that called me heard me loud and clear, as well, although the quality suffers a bit in windy areas. Speakerphone calls does however not work so well, because of a slightly muffled and tinny sound emitting from the phone speakers. The friend that called me said he could not hear me as well, either. Overall the phone is good if you want a luxurious look.

Similar to Chocolate and other LG Shines, it has poor USB sideloading performance. The amount of time require to transfer files is long. The poor performance is noticeable when transfering a lot of Mp3 or movies.

Always use a card reader. It is much faster than Shine's embedded USB solution.

as far as durability goes...is this stronger than a standard plastic phone?

i just bought one a couple days ago. the only thing that bothers me is the keypad. im getting used to it and everything, but it rememinds mr of a razr.. haha

Please Please Please don't buy this phone! I've had nothing but problems with it, it's brand new, about 40 days old now, there are major software problems, it freezes up, glitches, has a mind of its own and starts text messages, and since its just past the 30 day warrenty if I send it in I get a refurbished one, and I've NEVER had luck with refurbished ones. It irks me that I'd essentially be buying a used previously broken phone for the price of a new one too. Its far from user friendly too, I use my phone to text, take pics, and call people, the keypad is terrible and doesnt read 100% of the time, the camera is a pain in the rear to get to(esp if that sub menu thing is up), there is nothing right about this phone. The "shine" isn't even really that shiny, its kinda like the cheap mirror that's warped in places. Save your money and state of mind and pass on this phone!

i rmr seein this in the mall at a kiosk its an eh phone

the screen is super fragile so i keep it safe from scratches. so this isnt a phone you can throw around.

and as far as "dont buy this phone it has problems".. its not the same for everyone. mine is fine. *shrugs* and i would NOT recommend buying refurbished phones. most of them are pieces of crap. coming from experience. believe me.

i like it cause its like a digital camera. it takes excellent pics!

a had one and broke within a week

not one for durability, but then again i am a bit rough with my phones with all the sports i play

looks nice...maybe ill buy it...lol...my razor is losin life lol

does anybody know how to put custome ringtones for messages?

i just bought it 4 days ago for my father birthday. but i really don't know how to put the ringtone to the TXT message?

I found that connector you were looking for

@ 619hoodlum: You can change the TOne of a Txt Message by using a program called BitPim. You need to replace 1 of the standard ones with 1 of your own. It's the only way it is able to be done.

I have had my phone for about 3 weeks now and I am happy with it.

This is a detail posting on LG CU720 Shine. Thanks for the posting. It would help anyone to decide whether to go for it.


Cell Phones

Just got mine on Friday and besides being a bit on the heavy side, like the unit. AT&T gave it to me free as an upgrade after 18 months. Surre I'll get over the weighty feel of it soon enough.


The Sandman